The Archaeology of American Cemeteries and Gravemarkers (American Experience in Archaeological Pespe

“A masterful overview of archaeological work on American gravestones and cemeteries that should be on the shelf of every student and scholar of mortuary studies.”—Lynn Rainville, author of Hidden History: African-American Cemeteries in Virginia

“A landmark publication that synthesizes for the first time the massive amount of research on historic mortuary archaeology, especially monuments, across America. An essential text for many archaeologists, art historians, and cultural anthropolgists.”—Harold Mytum, coeditor of Prisoners of War: Archaeology, Memory, and Heritage of 19th- and 20th-Century Mass Internment

Gravestones, cemeteries, and memorial markers offer fixed points in time to examine Americans’ changing attitudes toward death and dying. In tracing the evolution of commemorative practices from the seventeenth century to the present, Sherene Baugher and Richard Veit offer insights into our transformation from a preindustrial and agricultural to an industrial, capitalist country.

           
Paying particular attention to populations often overlooked in the historical record—African Americans, Native Americans, and immigrant groups—the authors also address the legal, logistical, and ethical issues that confront field researchers who conduct cemetery excavations. Baugher and Veit reveal how gender, race, ethnicity, and class have shaped the cultural landscapes of burial grounds and summarize knowledge gleaned from the archaeological study of human remains and the material goods interred with the deceased.

• Everyday Architecture of the Mid-Atlantic: Looking at Buildings and Landscapes (Creating the North American Landscape)
• Understanding Cemetery Symbols: A Field Guide for Historic Graveyards (Messages from the Dead)
• In Small Things Forgotten: An Archaeology of Early American Life
• Digging in the City of Brotherly Love: Stories from Philadelphia Archaeology
• Archaeology, History, and Custer's Last Battle: The Little Big Horn Re-examined
• Stories in Stone: A Field Guide to Cemetery Symbolism and Iconography
• 199 Cemeteries to See Before You Die
• Uncommon Ground: Archaeology and Early African America, 1650-1800
• A Graveyard Preservation Primer (American Association for State and Local History)
• The American Resting Place: 400 Years of History Through Our Cemeteries and Burial Grounds